With the clock ticking down toward a government shutdown, Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz approached a Democratic lawmaker on the House floor this week with a surprising pitch.
Speakership is voted on by House members, not party. A simple majority of votes is all it takes. If someone is absent, the amount of votes required goes down.
The Democrats are nearly half of the house, so if a few Republicans did not vote or joined the Democrats, their candidate would become Speaker. Because the Speaker can be anyone, not just a current House member, they could nominate not-McCarthy Paul Ryan and feasibly succeed. Ryan is likely not interested though.
Speakership is voted on by House members, not party. A simple majority of votes is all it takes. If someone is absent, the amount of votes required goes down.
The Democrats are nearly half of the house, so if a few Republicans did not vote or joined the Democrats, their candidate would become Speaker. Because the Speaker can be anyone, not just a current House member, they could nominate not-McCarthy Paul Ryan and feasibly succeed. Ryan is likely not interested though.